For years people have dealt with long term relationships. Men went off to wars like World War II and did not come back for years. Men and women often go off to college and leave their boyfriends and girlfriends behind. Knowing how to manage a long distance relationship is important for keeping the spark of love alive. This is especially important in the era of coronavirus and long term lockdowns.

How to Make a Long Distance Relationship Work

The key to making a long distance relationship work is to maintain closeness and intimacy by routine contact through online dating. Audio and video chats are good. Even traditional mail is good for letters that you can use to express your love and give your loved one something tangible to hold onto.
That having been said, how do you use these tools and just what works to maintain a healthy and lasting long distance relationship?

Believe in the Relationship

Absence may make the heart grow fonder in the short term but never being together physically can kill over the long term. You need to believe in your relationship and the future. You can still be skeptical because of issues that you have but most relationship problems can be solved with good communication. But, knowing when to end a relationship for reasons other than short term separation is also important.

Plan for When to Advance Your Relationship

When someone goes into the military, gets shipped overseas, and won’t be back for a year or two, you know when it will be possible to change things. This should be the subject of your ongoing conversation. When will things be different? When can how can you move on? If there is no plan for a future together, one or both of you will eventually choose to move on alone. If you want your relationship to go to the next stage, you should talk about when you will be in the same geographic area again, when the coronavirus quarantine will be over, and if that is when you will live together or even commit to a permanent relationship.

Everyone Needs Positive Reinforcement

You may love your distant friend dearly and believe in what he or she is doing while away from you. But, you need to say so, clearly and often. We all need positive reinforcement and this is especially true during difficult times. Many times the faith than a person puts in their long distance friend is what keeps them strong and keeps the spark of love alive.

Communicate, Communicate, Communicate

In successful long term relationships couples tend to communicate more effectively than when they are routinely face to face. Part of this is that when you apart you need to communicate in order to keep the flame burning. If both of you don’t engage in a back and forth exchange, the one who is carrying the burden of communication gets worn out and discouraged. Don’t let this happen. Take the time to ask questions, think about what your friend is saying in their communications, and plan special times to talk face to face on video chats.